


Marigold

by Jaseish (curseofbunny)



Category: LoliRock (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, First Date, Valentines Exchange
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-14
Updated: 2019-06-14
Packaged: 2020-05-07 10:27:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19207495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/curseofbunny/pseuds/Jaseish
Summary: Flowers, sweet summer nights, a plan for a date. Isn't this perfect?





	Marigold

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cockabeetle](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cockabeetle/gifts).



The enigma of the Sunday Afternoon was something that took a lot of getting used to. On Ephedia they didn’t have the same names for their days, nor did they glorify and idealize what the “perfect day” was for each, and they definitely did not have a specified “work” week and a “week’s end”.

Iris had insisted that a Sunday Afternoon was the best, absolute best, time of the week for a date. Talia didn’t have a positive or negative opinion of the idea, so she’d given in and blocked her schedule off and approached the object of her affections to officially ask him out.

The redhead had blinked in surprise.

“You want to… go on a date?”

Talia nodded.

Jodan slowly closed the book he’d been reading. “On earth.”

“Yes.”

He tapped his chin with the book.

It was a lazy day. A thursday, enough time to plan and enough time that it didn’t seem last-minute.

“How would that even work?”

“Well, I’ve been on one or two... “ Talia ran a hand through her hair as she thought. “I think someone buys the other flowers, then we meet up and have dinner, and we walk home?”

“Simple enough. Almost like an ephedian date.”

Talia snorted. “Yes, I know. Less dodging sentries, though.”

He nodded. “Yes, yes, far less of that.”

They stand for a moment. He’s wearing a bemused smile on his face.

“Well, how about this?” Jodan looks her in the eye, and Talia lets her eyebrows rise as she focuses on him.

“We meet up at the door when we’re ready, walk to- where did you want to go?”

“We could do a picnic if we don’t want to deal with earth restaurants.”

“You just don’t know how to order from them.”

“The earth languages are very annoying to read! I can’t help it.”

He rolls his eyes and smiles. “I’ll make the food if you get the flowers. That’s important, right?”

She nodded. “Very important.”

“Alright. And then we can walk to the park and have a picnic out of anyone else’s sights, and then we will have a good time.”

Talia felt something bubbling up as she nodded.

When it came to the Sunday in question, she wasn’t nervous. They’d become fast friends since he betrayed the twins and joined them, and even faster friends since they shared a love for books and disdain for haphazard magic usage. Between the two of them, they’d been able to crack down on some of Auriana’s drama…

But not all of it.

The older boy was easygoing and fun to work with. He was around their age, not too much older than his sister, with a warm smile and long fingers and a way with music. DJ Ezra joined Lolirock and their cover became more believable, and the four of them had a good time.

Talia pulled her hair back into a simple ponytail as she headed out.

Earth was, in many ways, similar to Ephedia. Some things were the same, with similar-styles of shops and occasionally familiar foods, but in other ways it was completely overwhelming. And despite the physical similarities of Earthlings and Ephedians, it was very clear that they were different.

She still remembered the first time Iris had offered her a glass of water. That had truly been something else.

She twirls a strand around her finger and walks down the Main Street. Either that was the title of the path, or it was the most important to the humans around here, she had never truly discerned. But she continues walking.

The floral shop has a lot of different things. Lillies and baby’s breath and roses and sunflowers and orchids, it felt a lot like the time Iris had insisted they accompany her on a gardening contest. Talia admired the craftsmanship of raising so many lovely plants.

And she remembered the fuzzy feelings from when Kyle had given her a bouquet. That had certainly been a bonus.

If she thought about it, she could still remember the formation of it.

There’s a woman behind the counter, patient and bored looking, blonde hair pulled out of sun-tanned cheeks with a pale purple bandanna. When she sees Talia she brightens, rocking up onto her heels.

“Talia! Is Auriana here too?”

Talia laughed once, shaking her head. “No, she’s still at home. I didn’t know you worked here, Shelby.”

“Something has to pay for the wax and boards. So, what can I do ya for?”

“Excuse me?”

Shelby came around the counter and lifted the face of a brilliant flower towards her. “You know, what are you looking for?”

Talia shook her head a bit. “Right, yes. I’m trying to find some… flowers. I’m going on a date, and it’s my job.”

“Your job?” Shelby raised an eyebrow.

“You know, someone has to buy the flowers for their partner? I’m taking Jo- Ezra out.”

“Auriana’s brother? The DJ?”

Talia nodded.

Shelby clapped in excitement. “Oh that’s perfect! What about- ah- He really likes purples. What about french lavender and baby’s breath? Or maybe some hydrangeas?”

Talia leaned on the counter next to her. “How about- uh, how do you say it, fuck me up?”

The girl grinned and grabbed a tray of plants. “Perfect!”

Shelby departs to the counter behind the desk while Talia resumes her search. It felt like there was something missing from the spread, some pop of color to nestle in with them.

There's soft pops of pink and green, plenty of roses and carnations and sunflowers. Those were Iris’ favorites, along with… yes. She traces a nail over the soft petals.

She needed something bright. Something yellow. Something rebellious.

She rested a finger on the flower's stem.

Shelby hummed. "What do you have there?"

Talia presented it to her. "The crowning jewel of that bouquet."

The blonde grinned and curtsied as she took it. From a royal's perspective, it was far from perfect in form. However, as the marigold is laid in the dead center, the lavender and hydrangeas surrounding it, and the baby's breath and some spare yellow accent flowers lining the edges.

She has them wrapped in blue and orange paper.

Talia takes a deep breath. She had never been this nervous to ring the doorbell to Iris' home before, so what made this so different?

She takes another breath.

And another.

The door opens slowly.

Jodan is the type of boy who always looks graceful. His eyes are the kind to stay soft even through the horrors of war, and even now they only soften further as his face melts into a near-teary smile.

The doorway frames him like a painting. The smoke billowing from the kitchen framed his handsome face like a crown of stormclouds, the bouquet laid across his arms held as delicately as a child, the two princesses tossing a fire extinguisher between them looking more like cherubic imps.

He looks up at her with those tender eyes.

They both burst into nervous giggles.

Jodan reaches forward to brush a stray hair behind her ear. “They’re lovely. You did… they’re perfect.”

She pointedly over-leans to the side to peer around him, eyebrows high. “Thank you, but, um… what happened here?”

Iris has the fire extinguisher by now, and Auriana is braced with crystal shields. The two are both semi-crouched, ash and smoke dusting their cheeks and fists.

Iris shoots the fire-extinguisher.

A moment later, Ellen steps forwards, covered in bubbles and frowning.

Jodan’s eyes widen as he steps forwards and shuts the door quickly, one hand falling to cup her hip. “That’s our cue, that’s our cue.”

They make it out of the neighborhood and onto ‘Main’ street again before they collapse onto a bench together.

They rest their eyes by tipping their faces to the skies, their hands having long since shifted to hold each other.

“So,” Talia sighs out.

“Yeah?”

“Spill.”

“Apparently-” Always a good way to start a story. “When you’re making agnedate on earth, it is a _bad_ idea to bring magical fire into it. And _apparently_.”

Talia lets out a soft wheeze of laughter.

“When magical fire is used in an earth kitchen, it is very hard to put out.”

She shakes her head. “Oh, I’m glad I didn’t see it. I think I would have…”

“Known what to do and not permanently scarred the countertops and the future Queen of our planet?”

Talia clucks her tongue.

“Perhaps.”

She turns to look at him, but he’s already looking at her.

She leans forwards and presses their noses together.

They rest like that, forehead to forehead, nose to nose, breathing each other’s air, until she pulls back.

“We should… We could…” She looks back first, and he matches the action.

The restaurant behind them has a soft, golden glow to it. The lights are just a bit dimmer, the booths a bit emptier, the curling letters on the door just a bit more elegant. And Jodan nods twice, so they get up, just a pair of two young aliens on earth, looking every bit the part of two wild teens.

His spare hand finds hers, the other still occupied with the bouquet.

The woman behind the counter nods to the sign telling them to seat themselves, and the two settle into a booth towards the back. He hadn’t had time to lose an apron, and she hadn’t had time to change from the sweatshirt and jeans, so they were both looking underdressed.

But they were here.

Talia brought her fists up to rest her chin on. Jodan smiled and mimicked the motion.

“So.” She lifted her eyebrows.

He breathed out a soft laugh. “So.”

“What now?”

“Hm? Didn’t you do the research?”

“I did some research.” She let one hand drop, resting between them on the table. “But I guess after a while I was more curious in seeing what we’d do on our own… devices.”

"I see. So… we're on our own. We have flowers and we are in a food establishment. Most importantly, we’re together.” Jodan waggled his eyebrows. “So that’s the setting. Now the devices…”

His eyes swept over the table before them. The faux flower in a vase to the side, the cheap menus behind it and the spice shakers, the napkins and whatnot.

He selected something long and thin with four prongs at the end. “Like this?”

Talia leaned forwards to take it. “A fork. You know what that is.”

He grinned and leaned towards her. “Yes. And?”

A woman comes up to them, an apron tied around her waist and a notepad onhand. “What will we be drinking tonight?”

The two share a glance.

Talia chances it first.

“Juice?”

The woman nods. “Orange?”

Both of them nod once. “Yes, that’ll do.”

The woman has a strange look on her face as she moves away.

Talia leans back into Jodan’s space. “Once I asked for wine, and they asked for my identification. What a strange place…”

“At the desert, they even served water. Imagine that! Serving poison so freely.” They revel in it for a moment, the trust that they both understand the plights of it all equally.

Jodan is the next one to speak. “I don’t think I want to eat here.”

Talia hums. “Well… even if we don’t, we can have the date at our pace. No one can tell us to quit it or to hurry it up or move it on, it’s just us.”

Jodan rests his hand on hers. “It is.”

There’s another comfortable silence. The woman brings their drinks and they nod their thanks.

After a while, Joda glances around them before activating his magic circle under the table, dropping a book onto the seat next to him.

“I’ve been reading this o-” He starts, only to get interrupted.

“Really?” She leans forwards to spin it and flip through. “I read this one a few weeks ago!”

He blinks once, then twice, and smiles. “Really? What did you think?”

“Some of the technique is a bit strange, but it had a lot of very good notes. I have a… contact who likes alchemy, so I like getting to know something about it.”

“Really now?” Jodan’s eyebrow goes up. “Interesting. The technique seemed really voltan to me, so not that strange… What issue did you see in it?”

“Mostly the lack of any blood magic. It’s not common, no, but it feels more…” She clucks her tongue. “Familiar to me than what the book went into.”

“I mean, blood can’t be used as a substitute for any old alchemic base.” He shrugs. “Even if your alchemist likes blood magic, it’s not the standard for a reason. What kind of alchemy does he tend to?”

She waves a hand, making an uncertain ‘ehh’ noise. “I’m not very sure. How do you know so much about it?”

He nodded. “My sister, Maysa, is an alchemist. Have you heard of her?”

Talia thought about it. “I’m unsure… Have you heard of Kalei?”

“Where’s he from?”

“Borealis, he’s one of the royal family. I got to meet them back before the attack on Xeris. He and Kane have some kind of sight, and it was… interesting.”

“One of my sisters has it.”

Talia’s face flushes. “And… so do I.”

Jodan rests his chin on his hand and reaches over to hold her hand, brushing his thumb over her knuckles. “And it’s alright.”

She took a deep breath and nodded. “Yes… it’s alright. Not spooky.”

“I think it’s cool.”

She flushes and makes a scoffing sound. “Really?”

“Everything about you is cool.”

She turns her face down and focuses on the book. Despite everything, that was going to make her feel some type of way…

The silence presses for a moment.

And then there’s a flower being waved in her face.

Talia jerks back to look at it.

One of the marigolds, a slender hand attached to it, puppy dog eyes and a sweet pout at the end of the arm. Talia shut the book and took the flower.

“Why not leave it in the bouquet?”

“Because I wanted to make you smile. Or laugh, either is fine.”

Her face heats before it all makes her shake her head and dissolve into giggles, pressing it back into his hand. “Oh, you.”

He takes it back. “Oh, me.”

Talia looks back at him, where he’s dragging the marigold over his lips and smiling at her.

She can’t help the laughter as it continues.

He finds her hand and holds it, and all she wants is…

She leans forward and grabs his chin, pulling him in for the quickest, sweetest kiss.

Besides, didn’t sunday afternoons and first dates always end in first kisses?

The marigold falls from his fingers as he cups her cheek, forehead pressed against hers and lips brushing hers, the air shared between them impossibly more intoxicating than the air around them.

Talia’s eyes lift to meet his. He closes his own and dips back in to steal a second.

A third.

A fourth.

It’s gentle.

It’s perfect.

**Author's Note:**

> let me know what yall think!!!


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